Terrifier 3 May Have Revealed Art The Clown's Real Backstory With A Joke (2024)

The mysterious and horrifying origin story of Art the Clown may have been revealed in Damien Leone's blood-soaked threequel Terrifier 3, although it was initially dismissed as a joke. The independent low-budget horror movie has carved a path of destruction through Hollywood and beyond, as Terrifier 3's astounding box office totals continue to confound industry experts. The eye-opening success of both Terrifier 2 and Terrifier 3 is a testament to the one key element of the franchise that has made an indelible mark on pop culture: the demonic killer known as Art the Clown.

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Part of what makes Art such an iconic villain is how little is known about him. While audiences have become familiar with Art's more supernatural powers and abilities, many of the key questions about the clown's backstory have gone unanswered through three movies. Art's silence, his black-and-white outfit, and who or what he was before the events of Terrifier have never been addressed amid all the blood and carnage. However, a throwaway joke at the beginning of Terrifier 3 might have provided a real answer about Art's origins, even if it was dismissed as a joke at the time.

Related

The ending of Terrifier 3 has a blink-and-you'll-miss-it reference to Art's history as a book title, and it could point to what's next for the clown.

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Terrifier 3 Suggests Art The Clown Was A Serial Killer In The 90s

The Killer Supposedly Murdered Over A Dozen Children

Terrifier 3 May Have Revealed Art The Clown's Real Backstory With A Joke (2)

Early in Terrifier 3, a pair of demolition workers venture into the house where Art and Vicky have waited in the attic for five years, intending to inspect it before demolition. Seeing his anxious partner's reaction, the demo crew leader spins a tale about a serial killer from the 1990s in the area who murdered over a dozen children and dumped their bodies in the funhouse at the carnival, referring to the eponymous Terrifier attraction where the climax of Terrifier 2 occurred, and where Art was killed (again).

Terrifier Franchise Key Details

Movie

Release Date

Budget

Box Office Gross

RT Tomatometer Score

RT Popcornmeter Score

Terrifier

2016

$35,000-$55,000

$416,000

60%

53%

Terrifier 2

2022

$250,000

$15.7 million

86%

80%

Terrifier 3

2024

$2 million

$41.5 million (and counting)

75%

87%

While virtually nothing is known about Art before Terrifier, the implication is that he was the serial killer that the demo crew leader was referring to. While creator Damien Leone himself has confirmed that Art was human at one point, ever since his resurrection at the end of Terrifier, he has been something else entirely. However, Terrifier 3 also mentions that if a demon was choosing a vessel to enter the human world, a serial killer would be a fitting choice. Terrifier 3, therefore, suggests that Art is the serial killer bogeyman that the demo worker refers to.

Terrifier 3 Claims Art's Funhouse Backstory Is A Joke - But Is It?

The Story Is Quickly Laughed Off, But There Could Be Truth To It

Terrifier 3 May Have Revealed Art The Clown's Real Backstory With A Joke (3)

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The demo worker's ghost story is told in jest, and is dismissed right away as a joke intended to wind up his already-uncomfortable partner. However, that doesn't mean it was completely false. In fact, it makes far more sense for the quick story to be based on a local legend or old news story from years past, as something as brutal and nightmarish as a serial killer who murders children would leave a scar on any community. It seems far more likely that even if the demo crew leader dismissed the story, he didn't conjure it out of thin air.

Before he retired from acting, Art the Clown was played by Mike Giannelli in Damien Leone's first two short films and the feature-length All Hallow's Eve. In the Terrifier franchise, Art is played by David Howard Thornton.

The more realistic notion is that the demo crew leader mentioned a true story, or at least a widely believed story, but after seeing his partner's reaction, he lied about it being untrue to calm his nerves. The story seems far too specific and grisly to not have any basis in reality, even if it was only a rumor that the locals whispered about.

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Why Terrifier 3's Serial Killer Backstory For Art The Clown Makes Sense

A Terrifier 2 Clue Points To Its Accuracy

Art is already shown to have an unnatural penchant for extreme violence in Terrifier. The dismemberment and callous murders he commits are the work of a truly deranged person, and someone who has cultivated that delight in the agony of others over a long period of time. Art being a serial killer before his demonic transformation makes complete sense, as his actions align with someone who is comfortable killing children after the transformation; in both Terrifier 2 and Terrifier 3, Art takes perhaps the most joy in his murders of children.

Related

Is Art The Clown A Demon?

The Terrifier franchise is driven by the creatively murderous Art the Clown, but through three movies Art's origins and true nature remain mysterious.

Terrifier 2 may have provided further evidence of Art's past life as a serial killer. In Terrifier 2, a newspaper article is shown that features a story about a young girl named Emily who went missing in the area where Art's funhouse is located. Meanwhile, Art's greatest ally in the movie is a demon who manifests as a young girl, who goes on to invade Victoria Heyes' body in Terrifier 3. It's possible that the demon took the shape of one of Art's former victims in its first appearance. What better way to lure children than with a friendly clown at the funhouse, after all?

Terrifier 3 May Have Revealed Art The Clown's Real Backstory With A Joke (5)

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Horror

Terrifier 3 follows Sienna and her brother as they attempt to move past the traumatic events of Art the Clown's Halloween massacre. As they embrace the Christmas season, Art reemerges, intent on turning their holiday into a nightmare, continuing his reign of terror.

Director
Damien Leone

Release Date
October 11, 2024

Studio(s)
Dark Age Cinema , Fuzz on the Lens Productions

Distributor(s)
Cineverse

Writers
Damien Leone

Runtime
125 Minutes
Franchise(s)
Terrifier
prequel(s)
Terrifier , Terrifier 2
Main Genre
Horror

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Terrifier 3 May Have Revealed Art The Clown's Real Backstory With A Joke (2024)

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